Loupes are magnification devices that can improve dental, medical, or other treatments by magnifying small areas to aid an individual's ability to make fine and precise movements and actions. Fields as diverse as dental, medical and even various hobbies, such as model building and stamp collecting, can benefit from the use of loupes. In the dental and medical fields, loupes aid in magnifying small treatment areas in which the health practitioner seeks to make fine and precise movements and actions. An example would be a dentist using loupes to magnify a patient's oral cavity in order to find areas that require treatment, and being able to perform the fine movements required for treatment with enhanced precision. Another advantage to loupe usage is that by magnifying small areas, individuals may be able to work for extended times while enhancing the ability to practice better posture and ergonomics.
A headlamp used in conjunction with a loupe further enhances the advantages of loupe usage by directing light along the line of sight. By directing light in this manner, shadows that may be casted across the area being magnified can be eliminated.
Loups and accompanying headlamp technology is constantly changing. Loupes are becoming smaller and lighter. Similarly, headlamps have become more compact, lighter and brighter through the use of LEDs and other light sources. The power sources for these headlamps are similarly becoming more compact and lighter. Typically, the headlamp is mounted on the loupe frame or a headband and powered by a battery pack worn on the body and connected to the light with a cable.
Along with seeking to make headlamps more compact, lighter and brighter, there is also a growing demand to improve upon the output characteristics of LEDs and other lights sources. For example, creating a tighter spot of light that is projected on surface, more defined edges for the spot of light that is projected on a surface, improved collimation of the light and greater intensity. Traditional light output modifying means are often bulky, expensive and require high-precision fixtures and assemblies to accomplish their objectives. This is often at odds with the intended application and intent behind selecting a LED to begin with. The result is that there is a demand for a way to produce these improved LED output characteristics without these expensive high-precision fixtures and assemblies, and in a compact and low-cost fashion, more in-line with the objectives behind LED usage.
Additionally, there is always an interest in efficient heat dissipation and the resulting efficiency increases derived from maintaining a cooler junction temperature and longer run time of the LED.
Additionally, for dental, medical and surgical purposes, there is always interest in making headlamps easier to disinfect in the interest of safety for both the patient and the user. As medical and dental professionals are in contact with their patients, if they touch the headlamp to adjust the light, pathogens can be transferred to the headlamp. If the headlamp is not disinfected between procedures, pathogens can be transferred to new patients.
Thus, there is a need for lights with higher intensity, more compact size, lighter weight, more efficient lighting technologies, improved optics, improved cooling, less cabling to tether the operator and more compact power sources.